More than 400 young people have signed a petition objecting to the refusal of planning permission for a multi-use sports pitch in Heatherside.

In less than three hours, students at Tomlinscote School and Sixth Form in Frimley collected several pages of signatures from classmates.

The students were left devastated following the decision made last week by Surrey Heath Borough Council’s planning committee to reject the application for the multi-use games area on Heatherside Recreation Ground.

Plans for the facility surfaced two years ago when the Safer Surrey Heath Partnership proposed the games area. It believed it would provide activities that would divert young people away from engaging in antisocial behaviour.

A Surrey Youth Development consultation carried out last summer canvassed up to 80 young people. It found the pitch had full support from bored teenagers who wanted something productive to do in the evening and a safe area to meet friends.

However, a group of residents opposed the application, fearing it would increase antisocial behaviour and said the proposed location was too near to homes.

More than 130 residents attended last week’s planning meeting to express their concern on the matter. They had already sent in 58 letters of objection and collected two petitions with a total of 145 signatures. Due to the strength of opposition to the plans, the committee, with the exception of Surrey Heath Liberal Democrat leader David Whitcroft, voted to reject the application.

The young people have criticised the decision and said it was not fair as they were never consulted specifically on the games area that was meant for them.

They were unaware they could have attended the planning meeting to show their support for the pitch.

The young people said that the facility would not have become the target of antisocial behaviour. They are calling for it to be built and say they would have used it productively.

The proposed pitch would have measured 28 yards by 14 yards, with hoops and goals for a range of team sports, including football and basketball. Two small floodlights would have illuminated it.

The application was amended slightly in October to include up to two youth shelters adjoining the pitch in Martindale Avenue.

The teenagers who organised the petition had planned to present it to the mayor, Cllr Patricia Pearce, at the full council meeting on Wednesday. However, last week they discovered they had missed the council’s deadline to apply to do so.

Instead, the petition will be presented to the mayor in the near future.

Tilly Smith, 15, who helped organise the petition, said adults needed to understand that there was nothing for young people to do.

She understood that a large group of teenagers could appear intimidating to others but said they stayed together in a group for safety.

“We mean no harm,” she added. “We are only seen as kids. We are not as important, apparently, as the rest of the residents, which is probably why we weren’t consulted.

“It’s the same everywhere. We are young people so everyone assumes we are blatantly doing something wrong.

“I want councillors to think about us. The whole idea was for the adults to think about the kids and they need — to think about what kids want, not what adults don’t want.

“My friends were really excited about it. Everybody wants something up there to do instead of hanging around doing nothing.”

Surrey County Council youth officer Gavin Kitchen believed the games area would have been beneficial to Camberley. He disagreed with residents’ that the facility would have increased anti-social behaviour and vandalism.

He said: “Our experience is that when young people have nothing to do that’s when a minority may behave inappropriately.

“Having nothing there will not stop young people from wanting to use that area. Whatever issues residents were trying to avoid, not putting a facility up there will resolve them.” Surrey Heath police inspector James Norbury expressed his disappointment at the council’s decision.

He accused the community of rejecting a scheme that would have diverted young people away from crime and disorder. He told the community it must now propose and run alternative facilities for young people, which Safer Surrey Heath Partnership can then support.

However, Cllr Stewart Stevenson, executive member for economy and environment, fears money set aside for the pitch will be taken back by Surrey County Council and used outside the borough.

“That money which could have been spent in Surrey Heath will now probably disappear,” he said. “I would like that money to do something to improve the facilities for the young people of Surrey Heath.”

He added: “A vociferous minority of residents have stopped young people from having something wonderful. They’ve stopped the only thing we could think of.

“We have tried our best. Unfortunately youth facilities is not the responsibility of the borough council.”